Effect of education on the appropriateness of serum drug concentration determination.

The purpose of this study was to document the effect of education on the appropriateness of serum drug concentration (SDC) collection. This study included a period of education for hospital personnel involved in the acquisition of drug levels. These included nursing staff, lab personnel, house-staff (residents/interns), ward clerks, and pharmacists. This study included patients receiving aminoglycoside and/or vancomycin while on the general medicine service during the specified study periods. Patients receiving less than 72 h of antimicrobial therapy and patients transferred to or from the surgery service were excluded from the study. A retrospective pre- and posteducation comparison using Chi-square analysis was made to determine whether the percentage of appropriate and useful SDCs was improved through education. There was a significant difference (p less than 0.005) between the percentage of appropriate SDCs in the pre- and posteducation period. As a result of the study, a change in procedure for ordering SDCs was initiated, using an educational program, in order to continue the trend of appropriate SDCs at the Veterans Administration.